Man struck, killed on elevated Metro track

A man was struck and killed on an elevated Metro track near the West Coldspring Lane overpass about 3 p.m. Thursday, suspending train service through the area, according to the Baltimore City Fire Department.

The man's body was in "visible sight to the public" before being covered by a sheet by a responding emergency crew, said Chief Kevin Cartwright, a department spokesman.

Maryland Transit Administration Police were still working to determine how and why the man entered the tracks Thursday night, said Terry Owens, a MTA spokesman.

"That will be a central focus of the investigation," Owens said. "We have cameras at the station, so we'll be able to look at the video and determine how he got into the track area, and from that determine what he was doing on the tracks."

The man had been walking west on the eastbound tracks near the West Coldspring Station when he was struck, Owens said.

"The track bed sits several feet below the platform area, and there is no reason that I can think of for an individual to be in there walking," Owens said.

The train that struck the man, filled with dozens of passengers, was stopped on the tracks. The passengers were offloaded onto shuttle buses shortly after 4 p.m., Owens said.

Emergency responders then began the task of trying to extricate the body from under the train.

Metro service was suspended for hours between Mondawmin Metro Station and Reisterstown Plaza Metro Station, according to the Maryland Transit Administration, and officials brought in buses to shuttle riders between the Mondawmin and Reisterstown Plaza stations.

The West Coldspring station was reopened with trains moving in both directions about 6:30 p.m., Owens said.